Unf*cking The Republic

Max reports on the growing cracks in the financial markets and the unprecedented lengths the Federal Reserve has already gone to in order to stabilize the global financial system. The U.S. is heading toward a full-blown liquidity crisis that threatens to seize up the financial markets. The situation is worsening daily at this point and Trump’s erratic policy decisions are contributing to the destabilization.

View the charts related to this episode.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:37

Post Show Musings: 00:19:33

Outro: 00:39:38

Resources

Challenger, Gray & Christmas: Challenger Report: September 2025

MacroMicro: US - Hourly Wage Growth by Wage Level

MacroMicro: US - Consumer Price Index (CPI)

MacroMicro: US - Fed Overnight Reverse Repurchase Agreements (ON RRP) Trading Volume

MacroMicro: US - Treasury Yields vs. Fed Funds Rate

MacroMicro: US - Federal Fund Interest Rates

MacroMicro: US - Fed Overnight Reverse Repurchase Agreements (ON RRP) Trading Volume

MacroMicro: US - Fed's Balance Sheet - Liabilities

Fortune: Without data centers, GDP growth was 0.1% in the first half of 2025, Harvard economist says

Video: MTN: Trump in Full Blown Panic as Market Collapse Imminent

Track Star: Zohran Mamdani

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If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, TikTok and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com. Join our Discord at unftr.com/discord.

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com). The show is hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Stephen Miran isn’t auditioning to run the Federal Reserve. He’s auditioning to destroy it. Like so many in Trump’s sphere, Miran was selected for his ability to appear like he’s doing the right thing and making the tough choices. In reality, he exists to destroy the thing he’s spent his entire life trying to be a part of. Miran is a highly educated and competent analyst whose academic veneer and projection of empathy belie his craven desire for power and to eradicate the independence of the Fed and place it under direct authority and control of the president. And make no mistake, when Jerome Powell’s term is up, this is who will be in charge of the Fed.

Chapters

Intro: 00:01:00

Chapter One: The Audition. 00:02:10

Chapter Two: The Power and Powers of the Fed. 00:07:15

Chapter Three: Who Is This Numbnut? 00:13:06

Chapter Four: Consistently Inconsistent. 00:18:34

Bring It Home, Max: 00:23:46

Resources

Federal Reserve Board: Stephen I. Miran

Barron’s: Last Year, Trump’s New Man at the Fed Thought Rates Were Too Low. What Changed

Miran’s Articles + White Papers

City Journal: Is Having the Reserve Currency Good for the U.S.?

Manhattan Institute: The Fed Isn’t as Independent as It Seems

Manhattan Institute: The Fed Doesn’t Need to Cut. Financial Conditions Are Already Loosening.

Manhattan Institute: The Fed Is Facing a Changed World. The Case Against Cuts.

Hudson Bay Capital: A User’s Guide to Restructuring the Global Trading System 

Manhattan Institute: Reform the Federal Reserve’s Governance to Deliver Better Monetary Outcomes

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If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, TikTok and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com. Join our Discord at unftr.com/discord.

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com). The show is hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this Phone a Friend, Max sits down with crypto entrepreneur and advisor Keith D. The pair discuss the history of Bitcoin, expansion of crypto markets and whether the public is in safe hands as the influence of cryptocurrency grows exponentially.

Resources

Keith D. on YouTube

Video: You can't afford to ignore Crypto with Keith D.

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If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, TikTok and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com. Join our Discord at unftr.com/discord.

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com). The show is hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The U.S. economy is headed for financial collapse. Repo market stress. Private credit market liquidity crunch. Subprime lending crisis. Spiraling deficits. Basis trade exposure. Dollar debasement. U.S. states in recession. Oil market contango. Tariff and trade wars. Each of these are like explosive devices hiding in the corners of the economic edifice that is the U.S. economy. And the Federal Reserve just released a shocking paper that exposes the biggest potential threat of all. Explosive devices have been set all around the economy and a new bomb was just uncovered in the most unlikely of places.

Chapters

Intro: 00:05:21

Chapter One: The Road to Economic Hegemony. 00:06:24

Chapter Two: Collision Course. 00:30:55

Chapter Three: Hidden Bomb. 00:35:50

Chapter Four: Bring It Home, Max. 00:44:50

Resources

The Lead Left: Middle Market & Private Credit – 2/10/2025

Mark Zandi on X

Axios: 22 states are in a recession or close to it, new analysis finds

The Fed: The Cross-Border Trail of the Treasury Basis Trade 

FSB: Leverage in Nonbank Financial Intermediation: Final report

Morningstar: Official data dramatically underestimates hedge funds' involvement in the Treasury market, Fed paper finds

Federal Reserve Bank of New York: Repo Operations

Fidelity: Investor behind Zions, Western Alliance bad loans is tied to $270 million in troubled debt

Car Dealership Guy: Tricolor: The messy collapse of a subprime auto lender explained

Investopedia: Basis Trading: Definition, How It Works, Example

The Guardian: What is private credit, and should we be worried by the collapse of US firms?

OilPrice.com: Oil Market Braces for Contango and Shale Slowdown

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If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, TikTok and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com. Join our Discord at unftr.com/discord.

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com). The show is hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Max and 99 are back this week for Show Notes; they start with a little pop culture music/movie talk, and transition into Unf*cker emails where they cover why the 1% doesn’t care if the economy is gutted, what figures you can trust from the Trump administration, Technocracy in Silicon Valley and a host of other things. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:27:51

Memberships: 01:24:16

Outro: 01:30:08

Resources

The Baffler: The Substance

Follow Us On Social: Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube

Leave a Review

Become a UNFTR Member

The Rewatchables: ‘Sneakers’ With Bill Simmons, Kyle Brandt, and Joanna Robinson

Jacob Riis: How The Other Half Lives

Climate Disruption: Lee Zeldin Cancer Gala

Paris Marx

New York Times: A Plea From Doctors: Cool It on the Supplements

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If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, TikTok and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com. Join our Discord at unftr.com/discord.

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com). The show is hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Barack Obama was the greatest Republican president of my lifetime—a statement sure to fire up establishment liberals and conservatives alike. But for progressives in the United States, this is what the Obama years felt like. Today’s episode examines the seminal policy achievements of the Obama years from the Affordable Care Act and wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to DACA and the response to the Global Financial Crisis. We offer the liberal and conservative views of the same issues, then finish with the progressive perspective on all. 

Resources

Migration Policy Institute: The Obama Record on Deportations: Deporter in Chief or Not?

TBIJ: Obama’s covert drone war in numbers: ten times more strikes…

NPR: Pledging To End Two Wars, Obama Finds Himself Entangled In Three

Video: Cornel West's Note to Obama

Obama Library

UNFTR Resources

Video: Barack Obama: The BEST REPUBLICAN President Ever

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If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, TikTok and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com. Join our Discord at unftr.com/discord.

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com). The show is hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently pledged $20 billion of support to Argentina to prevent its currency from sliding further and to backstop Javier Milei’s Trump-like economic agenda. Then, Argentina turned around and lowered its export tariffs and dumped its soybean crop on the market. They found a willing buyer in China, who has ceased purchasing U.S. agriculture due to the Trump tariff war. The whole affair boiled over when an AP photographer snapped a picture of a text thread on Bessent’s phone from Agriculture Secretary Brooke Collins who said U.S. soybean farmers were livid because their market collapsed. It’s another example of the Trump administration putting ideology and pettiness ahead of his own constituents. But there’s a larger game afoot that no one is talking about that this situation perfectly illustrates: We’re playing checkers and China is playing chess.

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:36

Post Show Musings: 00:25:22

Outro: 00:27:43

Resources

Americas Quarterly: A Key Pending Challenge for Milei’s Argentina

New York Times: Milei Vowed to Fix Argentina’s Economy. Then Came a New Crisis

Newsweek: Trump’s Argentina bailout sparks fury among farmers, Republicans

Paul Krugman: Why Is Trump Bailing Out Argentina?

Federal Reserve: Dollarization in Argentina

The Observatory of Economic Complexity: United States (USA) and Argentina (ARG) Trade

International Trade Administration: Argentina - Market Overview

MercoPress: Argentina records 21st straight trade surplus

CEIC Data: Argentina Consolidated Fiscal Balance, 1993 – 2025

Americas Quarterly: Milei’s Path to Dollarization: Riddled with Doubts

J.P. Morgan: De-dollarization: The end of dollar dominance?

Become a UNFTR Member

Book Love

Carol Wise: Dragonomics: How Latin America Is Maximizing (or Missing Out On) China's International Development Strategy

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If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, TikTok and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com. Join our Discord at unftr.com/discord.

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com). The show is hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Max and 99 are back to discuss headlines (AI, government shutdown, Hegseth speech + more) and recent Unf*cker feedback. Enjoy!

Chapters

Intro: 00:00:20

Emails: 00:46:56

Memberships: 01:40:10

Outro: 01:40:37

Resources

Wired: Palantir Wants to Be a Lifestyle Brand

Ed Zitron's Where's Your Ed At

Track Star: Pete Alonso

"Department of War:" Pete Hegseth FULL REMARKS at the WAR DEPARTMENT ADDRESS

New York Times: Text of the Email That Pete Hegseth’s Mother Sent Him

How I Built This: Bob's Red Mill: Bob Moore

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If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, TikTok and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com. Join our Discord at unftr.com/discord.

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com). The show is hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We continue to build on the idea that white Christian nationalism is, was and has always been the foundation of this country. To suggest otherwise is to be both ahistorical and absent in our politics today. The violent response to a concept so utterly innocuous such as “Black lives matter” should tell us everything. Before it was a movement (of sorts) it was a simple statement. But the reality is that they don’t. We need to stop calling it “Trump’s America” and just call it what it is. America. 

Resources

The Ezra Klein Show: Ta-Nehisi Coates and Ezra Klein Hash Out Their Charlie Kirk Disagreement

New York Times: Charlie Kirk Was Practicing Politics the Right Way

Democracy Now!: Project 2025 Co-Author Lays Out "Radical Agenda" for Next Trump Term in Undercover Video

Hudson Bay Capital: A User’s Guide to Restructuring the Global Trading System

Manhattan Institute: Reform the Federal Reserve’s Governance to Deliver Better Monetary Outcomes

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If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, TikTok and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com. Join our Discord at unftr.com/discord.

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com). The show is hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s evident now that the alt-right figures in charge of this administration are quickly realizing the vision set forth in Project 2025. But it’s also clear that they are moving just as quickly to implement the vision of Project Esther, the Project 2025 companion and follow-up from the Heritage Foundation. The two visions work in tandem to destroy the institutions that barely held Donald Trump in check during his first term and to undermine free speech of anyone opposed to their radical agenda. The combined projects are so well coordinated and overwhelming that we may be living through the end of the American experiment.

Resources

BBC: JD Vance hosts Charlie Kirk’s daily talk radio show

NPR: Trump files $15 billion defamation lawsuit against ‘New York Times’

Zeteo: The New McCarthyism: UC Berkeley Just Handed Over the Names of 160 Students and Faculty to the Trump Admin

Democracy Docket: Left-Leaning Nonprofits Push Back on Trump’s Crackdown Threats

PBS NewsHour: Economic fallout mounts as Trump halts near-finished wind power project

Truth Social: Donald Trump

The Chris Hedges Report: We Are All antifa Now

Just Security: The Proud Boys and Oath Keepers Are Domestic Terrorists, It’s Past Time to Call Them What They Are

PBS News: Elected officials, police officers and members of military on Oath Keepers membership list, report says

World Population Review: KKK Population by State 2025

Defense360: Bad Idea: Domestic Terrorist Organization Designations

The Nation: Barbara Lee’s Stand

Mondoweiss: From COINTELPRO to Project Esther: The evolution of domestic counterinsurgency in the U.S.

IISS: Iran’s nuclear programme after the strikes 

Book Love

Branko Milanovic: Visions of Inequality: From the French Revolution to the End of the Cold War

UNFTR Resources

The Carter Series: Reexamining Jimmy’s Time in Office.

The Clinton Years: The Most Neoliberal Presidency in U.S. History.

Video: The End of the American Experiment. 1776 to 2025.

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If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, TikTok and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com. Join our Discord at unftr.com/discord.

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Unf*cking the Republic is produced by 99 and engineered by Manny Faces Media (mannyfacesmedia.com). Original music is by Tom McGovern (tommcgovern.com). The show is hosted by Max and distributed by 99.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.